PARIS, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- Two people were taken into custody on Friday as part of an investigation into a flooded vacation camp in Gard, southern France where a German national was still missing, local authorities said.
The president and vice-president of the German association Jugerdforderung St. Antonius were detained on charges of "involuntary injuries, endangering the life of others, hidden work and exploitation of camping without authorization."
"The mayor had alerted the association's responsibles. 48 hours before the tragedy, the city hall authorities had alerted... (them) about the danger to stay there because of the possible rise of waters," Eric Maurel, Nimes prosecutor, was quoted as saying by local media.
The association is owner of the land that houses the holiday camp at Saint-Julien-de-Peyrolas that "was installed in a flood zone," he added.
A 70-year-old German national who took part in the camp's coaching was still missing, the prosecutor added.
Heavy rainfall had triggered flash floods in the Gard region, forcing the evacuation of 119 children from their campsite at Saint-Julien-de-Peyrolas, the interior ministry said.
Bursting rivers banks in the southern regions of Gard, Ardeche and Drome forced 1,600 people to quit the zone as a precaution measure, it added.
